Concurrent loss of the Y chromosome in cancer and T cells impacts outcome

Abstract Loss of the Y chromosome (LOY) in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) is the most common somatic alteration in men and is associated with higher mortality from epithelial cancers1–3. In tumours, epithelial LOY is also associated with poor survival4–7. This raises several fundamental questions, such as why LOY in PBMCs drives cancer mortality and whether there is a relationship between LOY in PBMCs, PBMC-derived immune cells and cancer cells (and, if so, what its consequences are). We sought to